This application corresponds to French application 99.08130 filed Jun. 25, 1999, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
The invention relates to an automatic cycle pedal for the rapid securement of the shoe of a cyclist to the pedal.
There are known pedals of this type comprising a pedal body provided with a shape to engage a retaining plate of the shoe of a bicycle shoe and a rear swinging retaining hook. This rear hook is prestressed by resilient means which ordinarily is constituted by at least one spring which can be of the coil compression type, the torsion type, the tension type or the blade type. The pedal moreover often comprises a camera screw device permitting the adjustment of the tension of the resilient means.
The pedal body is moreover provided with a tapped transverse bore for the securement to the body of an axle connected to a pedal crank of the bicycle. This axle is mounted in a bearing disposed in the pedal body and permits rotation of the pedal about the axle during pedaling.
Thus, these pedals comprise generally a relatively large number of pieces which also require certain machining, in particular for providing the tapping of the bore for the securement of the pedal axle which is received in bearings that are relatively bulky and expensive to make because they often comprise roller bearings or needle bearings.
An object of the invention is to provide a simple means for securing the axle of the pedal body, permitting omitting the tapping necessary for conventional pedals of this type.
Another object of the invention is to provide a pedal comprising a restricted number of pieces and which as a result is less expensive to make relative to the case of pedals now on the market.
Another object of the invention is to provide an extremely simple and reliable pedal at the level of the rear swinging retaining hook and which can comprise a simple and effective means for adjustment of the tension of the resilient means controlling the swinging of the rear hook.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a pedal in which the wear members can easily be replaced.
The object of the invention is an automatic cycle pedal, of the type comprising a pedal body provided with a fixed front hook for engagement with a fixed retaining plate under a bicycle shoe, and a rear clamping hook carried by a swinging lever articulated on a support in the pedal body, whilst being continuously urged by resilient means toward the retaining position of the rear hook, the front and rear hooks being adapted to coact to maintain the retaining plate of the shoe against a bearing surface provided on an upper surface of the pedal, characterized in that the resilient means comprises a curved resilient leg coacting with said lever, and in that said curved resilient leg is associated with a securement means by snapping onto a pedal axle adapted to be connected to a pedal crank.
According to other characteristics of the invention:
the pedal body and the curved resilient leg are made of a single piece of a synthetic material;
the curved resilient leg is a blade or a steel spring member or similar metal;
and the snap-on securement means are made of a single piece of metal of which one of the ends bears against the lever and the other end is connected to the pedal body;
the securement means for snapping the pedal body onto the axle is of a synthetic material and is overmolded on the resilient leg;
the resilient means constitutes with the snap-on securement means a detachable assembly that can simultaneously be snapped on the pedal axle and on the body of the pedal;
the resilient leg has an end shape whose distance to an end of the lever is adjustable to adjust the tension of the latter;
said distance is adjustable with the help of a cam or an adjustment screw screwed into the end of the resilient leg and bearing on said end of the lever;
the detachable assembly comprises a bearing surface adapted to come into contact with the retaining plate for the bicycle shoe;
the pedal axle is provided with a throat receiving the securement means by snapping in, so as to define the axial play of the axle;
the pedal axle is provided with two smooth bearings disposed on opposite sides of said throat.